Target names new chief legal officer

Don Liu has been named executive vice-president, chief legal officer and general counsel of Target Corp.

MINNEAPOLIS — Don Liu has been named executive vice-president, chief legal officer and general counsel of Target Corp., effective Aug. 22. In his new role, Mr. Liu will be responsible for all legal, corporate governance and government affairs matters for the company and will report to Brian Cornell, chairman and chief executive officer of Target.

Mr. Liu succeeds Tim Baer, who will retire in July 2017 after 23 years with the company. Mr. Baer will serve in an advisory role for the next 12 months to support Mr. Liu’s transition to Target.

“Tim’s leadership has been integral to Target’s success and we are grateful for his years of service,” Mr. Cornell said. “In all his years with the company, Tim has been a true guardian of the Target brand, bringing a sharp legal mind and rock-solid judgement to every challenge. He was a trusted voice on our leadership team, managing and mitigating issues and influencing our business during a time of intense change. He also developed a strong team of in-house legal talent and was a respected adviser to our board of directors. On behalf of the entire team, I thank Tim for the tremendous contributions he made to our brand and our business.

“As Tim transitions to retirement, I look forward to welcoming Don to our team. His extensive legal expertise as well as his deep business acumen will help us continue to navigate the increasingly complex business environment with the highest standards of ethics and integrity. I know Don will be an excellent addition to our leadership team.”

Mr. Liu joins Target from Xerox Corp., where he has served as executive vice-president, general counsel and corporate secretary since 2007. Previously, he was senior vice-president and chief compliance officer for Toll Brothers, Inc. and senior vice-president and general counsel for Ikon Office Solutions. Among his extensive professional affiliations, Mr. Liu is a member and former chairman of the board of directors for the Minority Corporate Counsel Association and former chair of the in-house counsel committee of the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association.

“I am privileged to join Target as general counsel,” Mr. Liu said. “I have long admired Target and the legal team behind the brand. Joining the organization will provide me with an incredible opportunity to bring my passion for the law to one of the great retail companies in America. I look forward to building Target’s business and positively impacting its reputation.”